Alex Robinson
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All things music, education, and other musings...

How to Sing Like Your Favorite Princess

3/22/2020

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Hello fellow music lovers! It has been quite a while... I thought I'd use this unexpected down time to create a video on one of my most favorite topics... the voices of the Disney Princesses! This is a video I created for My Music Match, a company I teach with that matches students with teachers based on their preferences, goals, and budget! In this video, I break down how to practice these songs, giving you some exercises to try for different concepts. I also go through a timeline of the vocal sounds of all the princesses, from Snow White to Moana. I've created a Spotify playlist to go along with it, so feel free to pause the video as you go along and play the tracks to hear the concepts in action.
Spotify playlist link: 
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/186riOQbzUl8eqhWAA7Cn8?si=n0THgbVJRoubH34PCNVvKQ

  • Don't go crazy warming up in your upper register. Focus on breathing exercises that will help you build a solid foundation. This will make it easier to sing in your head voice with support. Warming up exclusively in your upper register will tire you out!
  • These songs are more similar stylistically to Musical Theatre than they are to Pop. What this means is:
    • You won't hear any glottal onsets
    • What you will hear is very clear, enunciated diction
    • For the most part, there aren't ornamental scoops or riffs
  • The Princesses fall into 3 "eras" of vocal sounds:
    • 1. Golden Age (1930s-1950s) - This sound is more classical in nature, with tall vowel shapes and vibrato throughout.
    • 2. Renaissance (1980s-1990s) - This sound is between the Golden Age and Modern sounds, still has vibrato, but the vowel shapes are slightly more lateral and thus more conversational. 
    • 3. Modern (2000s-2010s) - This sound features even more lateral vowel shapes, more forward placement/nasal resonance, and less vibrato. 
      • Tiana is the exception to the no scoops or riffs rule, since her sound is more influenced by jazz, blues and gospel. Her sound is more chest/belt than it is mix/head focused.
  • Most importantly, trust your sound, don't force it! It's important to understand the stylistic differences of different time periods, but your voice may not sound like your favorite princess recording, especially if you are younger. Your voice is still developing! Trying to force your sound into something it isn't will cause unwanted tension in your jaw, neck and other parts of your body. Trust yourself and your teacher, and build a strong foundation with good technique, and these songs will be a piece of cake!

❤️ 🎶,

Alex
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Ear Training Game: "Solfege Hopscotch"

5/15/2019

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 Hello and welcome! I'm ~finally~ adding some content to my blog! I thought I'd get started with a fun game I came up with to play with voice and piano students alike. Younger kids love it, and it gets them up and moving, all while tricking them into practicing ear training! And it's easily adaptable to any skill level. What's not to love?

I can't take full credit for this game, as I was so inspired by the resources at The Full Voice. I printed the tonic sol-fa wall cards (found here towards the bottom of the page) and laminated them for use with my students. These are what I use for the game! The main product from The Full Voice are the workbooks written by Nikki Loney and Mim Adams, which I have found incredibly helpful in my lessons, especially with singers who have never studied music via another instrument before.  They incorporate theory, technique, and ear-training all in one. Additionally, there's a Facebook group and a podcast with invaluable information for anyone who teaches children how to sing. If you have kids in your voice studio, I urge you to utilize these resources and invest in their products!
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Okay, now that we're past the infomercial (not at all sponsored, by the way), here's the game: Solfege Hopscotch!

How does it work? ​

Place the solfege cards on the ground, in order. You stand on one side, and your student stands on the other. Then take turns jumping between intervals! I'll instruct my student to jump from one note to another, and sing the interval with them. Everything from how many cards you place on the floor, to the intervals you ask your student to jump to, to whether or not you sing with them, can be adjusted based on where they're at. I'll start with just Do, Re, and Mi on the floor, and only have them jump between one at a time, then I'll have them jump thirds between Do and Mi, then next time I'll add Fa and So into the mix... I'll start asking them to identify the interval (can they tell me that Do to Fa is a fourth?), then I'll have them do it a couple times without me singing to see if they can hear the intervals all on their own. Eventually we'll work up to having the whole scale on the floor! Their favorite part is when they get to instruct me which notes to jump between, but be warned - the sneaky kids will just make you jump octaves over and over! 
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And there you have it. Give me a shout in the comments if you end up trying this with your own students, or if you come up with your own spin on it - I'd love to hear from you!

❤️ 🎶,

Alex
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